Jm. Jenson et Mo. Howard, YOUTH CRIME, PUBLIC-POLICY, AND PRACTICE IN THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM - RECENT TRENDS AND NEEDED REFORMS, Social work, 43(4), 1998, pp. 324-334
Historically, juvenile justice policy has oscillated between rehabilit
ative and punitive approaches to managing young offenders. Policy and
practice in the 1970s and 1980s emphasized individual treatment for yo
ung offenders in nonsecure, community-based programs. An increase in v
iolent youth crime during the past decade has renewed interest in puni
shing delinquent youths. Cyclic fluctuations in juvenile justice polic
y and their relationship to policy, practice, and youth crime are exam
ined. Our analysis suggests that overall crime rates have remained rel
atively stable over the past three decades and are independent of prev
ailing juvenile justice policies. The findings support the need for ta
rgeted prevention efforts addressing the root causes of juvenile crime
. Needed policy reforms, public education efforts, and practice approa
ches are outlined.